Cremonese-Roma 1-3
GOALS: 17′ st Soulè, 19′ st Ferguson, 24′ st Wesley, 48′ st Folino.
Cremonese (3-5-2): Audero 5; Terracciano 5.5, Baschirotto 5, Bianchetti 5.5 (35′ st Folino 7); Barbieri 6, Payero 6 (11′ st Vazquez 5.5), Bondo 6, Vandeputte 5.5 (25′ st Grassi 6), Floriani 6 (12′ st Pezzella 6); Bonazzoli 6 (35′ st Sanabria sv), Vardy 6. On the bench: Silvestri, Nava, Ceccherini, Valoti, Sarmiento, Lordkipanidze, Johnsen. Coach: Nicola 5.5.
Roma (3-4-2-1): Svilar 7; Mancini 6.5, Ndicka 6.5, Ziolkowski 6 (1′ st El Aynaoui 7); Celik 6.5, Cristante 6.5, Kone 7, Wesley 7 (35′ st Tsimikas sv); Soulè 7 (40′ st Pisilli sv), Pellegrini 6 (15′ st El Shaarawy 6.5); Baldanzi 6 (15′ st Ferguson 7). On the bench: Vasquez, Gollini, Rensch, Sangarè, Ghilardi. Coach: Gasperini 7.5.
Referee: Ayroldi from Molfetta 6.
Notes: clear day, terrain in good condition. At 17′ Gasperini sent off for a direct red card (protests). Booked: Payero, Ziolkowski, Gasperini, Bondo, El Aynaoui. Angles: 2-5. Recovery time: 6′; 4′.
Roma beat Cremonese 3-1 at the “Zini” and hold on to first place in the standings. Soulè’s fifth goal of the season, Ferguson’s first goal in the Giallorossi and Wesley’s final seal give a further injection of self-esteem in view of next Sunday’s match against Napoli at the Olimpico, where Gian Piero Gasperini, sent off today for protests, will be forced to remain in the stands. It’s the only discordant note for a Roma team that saw their seventh clean sheet of the season disappear only in injury time. However, Folino’s goal in the 92nd minute was only the sixth goal conceded in the championship by Svilar, who immediately took center stage at ‘Zinì. In the 15th minute, a double exchange between Vardy and Bonazzoli: the Italian shoots first with his left foot, but Svilar instinctively rejects. It’s a heavy save because two minutes later Roma take the lead: Kone catches Soulè who takes the ball to his favorite tile and from the edge of the area lets loose a left-footed shot that’s unstoppable for Audero. About ten minutes later the Giallorossi team also doubled their lead with Pellegrini, but VAR canceled out the goal due to an offside by the number 7 at the time of Baldanzi’s previous shot. Once the scare was over, Cremonese returned to Svilar’s side: Floriani’s cross from the right, Vandeputte fired with a sure shot but the Giallorossi goalkeeper did well to deflect the ball onto the post.
At the end of the half there was also room for a second VAR episode: referee Ayroldi initially awarded a penalty to the grey-reds for a touch from Mancini’s hand, but the position of the defender’s arm was judged not to be punishable after the intervention of the monitor room. The trail of slow motion cases made Gasperini nervous and in the 62nd minute he received a red card for protests deemed excessive by the referee. However, it was his intuition to make the substitutions that led to the Giallorossi’s doubling: in the 62nd minute following a daring move in the area and an incorrect exit by Audero, the new substitute El Aynaoui served the other substitute Ferguson who scored his first goal of the season with the Roma shirt with his right foot. Gasperini’s second celebration from the stand comes in the 69th minute: a very fast midfield triangle between Ferguson, El Shaarawy and Wesley with the Brazilian appearing in front of Audero and overtaking him with a dig. In injury time there was also a goal from the 23-year-old Folino who headed ahead of everyone and beat Svilar. It’s not enough for Cremonese who remain at 14 points. A victory that also dispels a taboo: Roma, always defeated in this Serie A after the national breaks in September and October, find three important points right after the break. Now the Naples exam to continue dreaming.